During a year of extreme uncertainty for most businesses, one thing became exceptionally certain — advanced wireless technology will be critical to operational agility, resilience and innovation for the foreseeable future.
When the pandemic forced much of the global workforce to become isolated, wireless communications enabled vital connectivity. It allowed us to connect with colleagues and customers, networks and data, applications and services. It’s hard to imagine how anyone could have supported remote work, virtual events, video conferencing, distance learning, telehealth or e-commerce without Wi-Fi.
In a post-pandemic world, organizations will continue to support vast numbers of remote and mobile employees using an array of endpoint devices to make those critical connections. It’s why a recent Deloitte study finds that leaders across almost all industries plan to accelerate the adoption of Wi-Fi 6 networks over the next three years. Among U.S. executives, two-thirds said they are already deploying Wi-Fi 6 solutions or running pilot programs.
Not So Fast
The Wi-Fi 6 standard, also known as 802.11ax, was approved in 2019. It promises more consistent and dependable network connections with theoretical data transfer speeds of 10Gbps — four times faster than Wi-Fi 5. However, some engineers and analysts believe it could be as much as 10 times faster due to more efficient spectrum utilization and improvements for dense deployments.
Of course, there’s one very big catch. For Wi-Fi 6 networks to truly deliver multi-gigabit connections, the underlying wired network must be able to handle those demands. Most vendors say that will require pricey and complex upgrades of the network backbone, switches and cabling from conventional 1 Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) to 10GbE.
However, CommScope is offering a more affordable and straightforward upgrade path based on multi-gigabit Ruckus access points (APs) and network switches that have been optimized for Wi-Fi 6. These APs and switches allow customers to conserve costs by using their existing cabling plant and double backhaul capacity without expensive switch upgrades.
Eliminate Forklift Upgrades
In a Wi-Fi network, all APs require a wired Ethernet connection to a router or network switch to provide backhaul to the wired network infrastructure. Most Wi-Fi 5 networks use Cat5e Ethernet cables with maximum data transfer speeds of up to 1Gbps. That would create a significant bottleneck in a 10GbE network.
Instead of forcing organizations to replace Cat5e cabling with ultra-fast Cat6, Cat6a or Cat7 cables, Ruckus R720 and R730 APs take on some of the workload. They feature built-in 2.5Gbps Ethernet interfaces, which allows them to double their backhaul capacity to existing switches.
Ruckus ICX switches further eliminate bottlenecks with multi-gigabit performance. The 7650 model features 24 multi-gigabit Ethernet ports, allowing them to push high volumes of traffic through the wired edge. In addition, Ruckus’ advanced stacking technology allows you to group up to 12 switches, creating the operational characteristics of a single switch but with the port capacity of the combined switches.
With Power-over-Ethernet (PoE), ICX switches provide up to 90 watts per port to power APs. This simplifies the Wi-Fi setup by eliminating the need to install APs near existing electrical outlets.
Wi-Fi 6 will provide numerous business benefits, and CommScope offers a cost-effective upgrade path using its Ruckus portfolio of networking gear. If an upgrade is on your agenda, give us a call to learn more.
